Fuel Smarts

McCain Pressing for Passage of Safety Bill

At the request of Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater, Sen. John McCain “will do his best” to get truck safety reform through Congress before the end of the session next week.

As the clock ticked, Slater asked McCain to quickly move the bill that would create a new National Motor Carrier Safety Administration and toughen truck safety enforcement.“Sen. McCain will do his best,” said Sen. Commerce Committee spokesperson Pia Pialorsi. She said that even though there will not be time for markup hearings, Sen. McCain is working on getting unanimous consent to move the bill through the Senate.Another source said there has been some resistance to that approach, arising from some senators’ concerns about a provision that would kill the Single State Reporting System. SSRS is a source of revenue for some state public utility commissions, and they have objected to the change as it is drafted.